Well this sucks. Nick just told me that they have to go do a talk show in New York. And because of a modeling job I got earlier this week, I can't go with them.
"How long are you going to be gone?" I sighed and sat down on my bed. He sat down next to me and ran his hand, gently, across my cheek.
"It's only going to be two days. Not that big of a deal..." Nick said, trying to reassure me.
"I guess. I'm just going to be so bored. The house is going to be empty and I'm going to be all by myself. It's not fair that Sky gets to go with you guys," I pouted and then leaned my head on his shoulder.
"Well just remember it won't be that long and before you know it you'll be annoyed with all of us again. Plus you have your photo shoot. Just promise me that you don't become all big and famous before I come home," he smiled and then kissed the top of my head.
"I don't know....I mean if I find a real hot male model...." He got a shocked look on his face and I just giggled a little. "Just kidding. I don't think I could handle a perfect guy."
"I'm not perfect?"
"Far from it, sweetie." I messed up his hair and then got off the bed. He looked confused and tried to think of something to say.
"Well....well what if I meet someone in New York?"
"Then I'll come to the wedding," I joked and then left the room.
"Kota....that was a joke! You were suppose to say, you better not meet someone," he yelled from the other room and I just laughed..
Skylar:
I am so excited! Tomorrow, I'm going with the group to New York City! The guys are going to be on Late Night with Conan O'Brian and I get to come on with them. It's going to be so much fun. I do feel kind of bad though, Kota can't come because she has a job modeling and can't afford to miss this opportunity. I'm excited for her getting the job, but I know that she's disappointed to miss this trip with the guys. I'm kind of worried about the show, but A.J. said that he's used to doing these things by now and he even offered to help me prepare, seeing as how I've never been on television before. But this is so huge because it gives me a chance to get more clients. Not that I don't love working for the guys, it's just that I need more clients if I want to truly be a success in my field. Anyways, I was totally blown away when A.J. said he'd help me because, well frankly, I think he wants to strangle me sometimes. But I'm starting to look at him in a new light. He's really not that bad, as long as we're not doing something fitness-related. I'm so excited that I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight.
Lying in bed, all that I could think about was going to New York with the guys. At first, all my thoughts were happy ones. You know, like about seeing all the wonderful places (this means places like Radio City Music Hall, not the Statue of Liberty) and the beautiful hotels. But then I began to worry about the talk show part. I mean, I've never done a television interview, what if I freeze up and can't talk? What if my mascara is smudged and I don't know it? I know that that particular instance doesn't sound that bad, but just imagine millions of people seeing me with black marks of mascara around my eyes. It would be so embarrassing! What am I going to do? In frustration, I got out of bed and began pacing the floor. I can't do this! I can't go to New York and be on Conan. I know that, if anything, I'll only be on for a couple of seconds, but still. I am totally flipping out! Still pacing, I started humming one of Brian's songs to try to calm down. I wasn't humming very loudly at all when I heard a light tap at my door.
"Come in!" I yelled in a whisper, so as not to wake anyone up. The door opened and there stood Brian.
"You okay?" he asked sweetly. My face must have shown my concern because he walked towards me and gave me a giant bear hug. "I thought I heard you up and about. What's wrong?"
I hugged him back and let all the worry and frustration begin to drain out of my system.
"I'm sorry if I kept you up. I'm kind of having an anxiety attack." I laughed.
"No, I couldn't sleep either, something's on my mind. What's going on with you?" he whispered in my ear, still holding me. I let my head rest on his shoulder.
"I've never been on t.v. before, I'm seriously flipping out." I looked up at him. "A.J. gave me some pointers earlier, but they're really not helping me much."
"Well, maybe I can help." he said, brushing a piece of my hair back.
"I don't know what you could do. I... my problem is that I'm so worked up about this thing that I can't relax. I tried to sleep, but that's not happening tonight. I just, ugh, I don't know what to do." I said in utter frustration.
"I've got an idea. Stay here." Brian went into his room and returned a moment later, with his guitar. "This will help us both find some peace tonight. You game?" he asked, flashing me that killer smile.
"I'm up for anything if it'll ease my nerves." I muttered.
"Why don't you lay down in bed and I'll sit over here in the chair and sing to you." he stated.
"Don't be silly. Come sit on the bed, it's a king size for goodness sakes. There's plenty of room." I said.
"Are you sure that you don't mind?" he asked.
"Positive, come on." I urged him, patting the bed.
He sat down, propped some pillows behind him, and rested his head on the bedboard. I laid down on the other side of the bed. "Ready?"
"I'm ready whenever you are." I stated.
"Alright, just close your eyes and you'll be off to peaceful dreamland in no time." With that, he began playing a soft melody, and I began drifting closer and closer to sleep.
"What was on your mind? Want to talk about it?" I asked with my eyes still closed.
"Oh, nothing. Just try to fall asleep." he said quietly and began singing. He didn't have to twist my arm for that, I must've fallen asleep in 10 seconds flat.
Dakota:
I rolled over and noticed that it was 2 in the morning. God, why can't I sleep? Not knowing what else to do, I found myself in front of Nick's door.
Yeah, Dakota. Go whining to Nick every time you can't sleep. Ugh. I knocked on the door and was surprised that someone actually answered me.
"Come in," Nick yelled from inside, so I opened the door and walked in.
"Did I wake you up?" I asked, sheepishly.
"No, I couldn't sleep either." I looked at him with a smile and he just laughed. "Come on...." he said, patting the part of bed next to him.
Grinning widely, I jumped into bed with him and gave him a kiss on the cheek.
"Can you imagine the look on everyone's faces if they see us sleeping in the same bed? AJ will flip," I giggled and Nick just pulled me close.
"Who cares what they think. It's not their business. We know this whole thing now is purely innocent. When it's not innocent.....well that's still our business," Nick smiled and gave me a light kiss on the lips. We pulled the covers over us and I closed my eyes.
"Good night, Nick."
"Night, Baby."
Brian:
Lying there on her bed, singing to her while she slept. I couldn't have asked for more to solve my problem. I couldn't find the words to tell her how I feel about her, so I just kept singing. She fell asleep quickly and I just watched her sleep. When I was sure that she was out for the count, I began making up a song to tell her how I feel about her. Of course, I have no idea if I'll ever sing it to her while she's conscious. But just singing it then eased my mind about the whole thing. Sometime over the course of the night, I must've fallen asleep. I awoke to her quietly packing her suitcase for the trip. I realized that I was under the covers, yet I have no recollection of putting them there. Also, my guitar was on the floor next to the bed. When did I fall asleep?
"Sky, I'm sorry. I must have fallen asleep while I was singing to you or something. I... I..."
She looked at me with a bright happy face, "That's okay, Brian. When I woke up you were still lying there with your guitar across your chest. I thought you'd be more comfortable with some covers, so..."
I sat up in bed, "Thanks, Skylar. I haven't slept so sound in years. Usually I wake up at the sound of a pin drop. I don't know how you managed to get the guitar off me without waking me up, but you deserve a medal."
"No, thank you. I was so distressed last night, and you... you were an angel. I don't know if I would have gotten any sleep last night had you not come in and talked... and sang. I'm feeling so much better and confident now.
"Honestly, you are my angel."
Wow, her angel?!
"You helped me sort out my problem a little bit, too... Well, I'm going to go finish my packing now. I'll see you in a few." I said as I got out of bed and went to my room. This is going to be a fun trip!
Dakota:
The sun beamed down on me waking me up and then I noticed Nick still lying next to me. When I saw what time it was, I spazed.
"Nick! Wake up! It's already six," I yelled, shaking him. He wouldn't budge. Great, he picks a wonderful day to sleep heavily. I then resorted to my last option. I leaned over and kissed him hard on the lips. That finally woke Nick up and he looked up at me with a huge smile on his face.
"Well, good morning to you too," he laughed, but I rolled him out of bed.
"Nick.....time." He looked over at the clock and then he ran into the bathroom for a shower.
"Thanks, Kota," he yelled through the door and I just smiled, leaving the room.
Skylar:
"Everyone ready to go to the airport?" Kevin voice echoed up the stairs. "A.J. and I are down here ready to load the trunk."
"I'll be down in a minute!" I called back.
"Me, too!" yelled Nick.
"Me three!" yelled Brian.
I stuck my head into Brian's room and smiled.
"You're such a dork." I joked.
He just smiled and said, "Yeah, but I'm a cute dork."
"Says who?" I asked. Shot down! His ego took a little beating with that one, so I quickly added, "Just kidding!"
Again, that familiar smile spread across his face.
"Hey, you wanna sit together on the plane? We usually end up sitting in pairs, so..."
I smiled, "I'd love to sit with you. Bring some cards and we can play poker. I've got some magazines. Sound good?"
"Sounds great! Are you finished packing?" he asked.
"Um... yep." I answered.
"Here," he said, taking my bags, "let me get those for you."
"Well aren't you the gentleman. It must be those southern roots because no guys back home would carry a girl's bag for her.
"Thanks, Brian. Is there anything that I can do for you?" I asked.
"Oh! I forgot my guitar. Could you grab it... it's in the corner."
I picked up the guitar, nicely put into its case, and headed for the door. "No problem. Let's get out of here!"
Everyone piled into the van, everyone except for Nick. He was still standing on the porch saying goodbye to Kota. I swear, they are the cutest couple. They couldn't bear leaving eachother, even for two days. How sweet is that? We finally got Nick into the van and drove to the airport. As soon as we reached the airport, the seating arrangements were complete. A.J. was going to sit with Nick, Kevin was going to sit with Howie, Brian and I were going to sit together, and anyone else could figure it out themselves. We tagged our luggage, found our gate and boarded the plane. Luckily, everyone, including me, was used to being on planes. Of course, the guys had been on tour and flew across the world, and I'd been on plenty of planes with Kota (we had a fetish with trip taking because her parents could always support us money wise.) Only, I rarely flew first class. It was so nice; there was much more leg room and the stewardesses kissed a little more ass than in coach. Anyways, we all took our seats and prepared for the long trip. Brian and I chose a couple of seats by the window in the last row. It was so sweet, he let me sit by the window. Even though I've flown more than a few times, I still get a little bit freaked out when the plane takes off. But Brian was absolutely adorable about it, he held my hand and made jokes to get me laughing until we were in the air. We chit-chatted for awhile until a stewardess came around with the drink cart.
"Um... we'll take a couple of bottles of Vodka, and..." he looked at me with a knowing smile.
"And some bottles of whiskey and rum." I added. The stewardess left the bottles and continued down the aisle.
Brian let the smile go. "I thought this would be fun."
I let my smile go, too. "I figured. Besides, we've got a quite a few hours."
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Nick, A.J., Kevin and Howie were all turning around in their seats to look at Brian and I. Who cares?, I thought. They're just party poopers.
Dakota:
Well Nick's gone. Sky's gone. AJ's gone. And everyone else in the house is gone. Boredom here I come. Of course at first the thought of having the house all to myself sounds great! So I ran up into my room, changed in a pair of boxers and a tank top. Then I went to the stereo and played the music full blast. Yay! Party!
"Everybody! Rock your body! Everybody....rock your body right.... Backstreet's back ALRIGHT!" I screamed at the top of my lungs and started dancing around the house. Okay, I'm immature. Who cares? After dancing around for a little while, I ran to our junk food stash and pulled out the M&M's. CHOCOLATE. Heaven's food. This would go really good with....ICE CREAM. Suddenly I got the urge to go jogging, who cares that its to get ice cream. Skylar should be proud no matter what. I looked at the clock, seeing that it was 11. A little early for ice cream, oh well. My photo shoot wasn't until 2, which was a really weird time for a shoot. But I didn't say anything because a job's a job.
Skylar:
As we ripped into our liquor, Brian and I traded drinking tips, stories, and even some secrets. Gradually, the alcohol started affecting us. We just had more fun with each bottle. And laughing, we never stopped laughing because we were so toasted. Once we'd finished the bottles, we counted them about twenty times. I don't know exactly how many there actually were, though, because we couldn't count high enough in our drunken states. After awhile, we both got quite a bit hazy and tired. Brian leaned his chair back a little bit while I took a more creative approach to sleep. I put my chair back, too. But then, we pushed the armrest up that was in between us. Then I, still buckled in, turned so that I was facing him, placed my legs across his lap and rest my head on his chest. At some point we started holding hands. We were both so far gone that we slept the whole way to New York. When the plane landed, Kevin and A.J. woke me up by taking the shoes off my feet (which were in the aisle over Brian's lap) and started tickling them. I instantly started waking up, and the violent shakes of laughter that erupted from my body woke Brian up, too. By then, we were both pretty sober. But amazingly, I didn't feel weird about the way we woke up, in each other's arms. In fact, it seemed kind of natural. The only thing that made it almost uncomfortable was that the guys kept bringing it up in crude jokes, but even that wasn't so bad. We rented a van to take us from the airport to our hotel.
"Where're we staying?" I asked out loud.
A.J. beamed a bright smile and said, "The Ritz-Carlton, baby! Let me tell you, this is what you call a first class hotel."
"Yeah, last time we came here, that's where we stayed and it was a blast!" Nick joined in. It sounded good to me.
"So... where's everyone sleeping? How many rooms do we have?"
Kevin spoke up this time. "We've got three two-bedroom suites. You can have your own room and one of us will get a cot or something. Don't worry about it. We'll take care of it."
"Kevin, it's not that big of a deal." I said. "We all live together... I can share a room. Just treat me as one of the guys instead of the only girl here, okay?" He looked back at me.
"Are you sure? I mean..."
"I'm positive. It's no big deal." I reassured him.
I looked over at Brian and whispered, "All the rooms have private bars, right?" He looked at me and grinned.
"Oh, yeah. We're talking private mega bars. They've got everything!" he whispered back. Then he yelled out loud to the group, "I'll room with Sky, we're hall buddies at home anyways. You mind, Sky?" he asked me.
"No, we're used to each other at home. That works out." I said.
The rest of the guys exchanged glances, but Brian and I didn't care. Besides, we're going to be partying tonight.
Dakota:
I drove to the photo shoot which ironically was at the bench. Why is it ironic? Who knows.....almost anything seems to be ironic, after Alanis Morsesette came up with that song. Anyway, I walked onto the beach wearing a short haulter sundress and carried a bag with a few necessities.
"Dakota Ross?" some big guy sitting on a directors chair said, when he saw me coming.
"Yup that's me," I smiled and shook his outstretched hand.
"Well, I'm Jacob Stevens. I'm the photographer. Umm...wardrobe is over there," he said pointing. "And makeup is in the tent next to it. You and three other girls are going to be photographed today. Did you agent inform you of what the photos are for?"
"Not really.....she gave me really sketchy details," I admitted and he gave me a really weird look. Okay, okay. I know this is my first modeling job. I'm stupid give me a break!
"First job?" BINGO. I nodded bashfully and smiled. "Okay, well you're be photographed for national print ad's for The Gap. It's huge exposure for an up and coming model." My smiled widened and he waved me off to wardrobe. Milan here I come.
Skylar:
When we got to the hotel, we found out that our rooms were a little spread apart. Apparently, the BSB manager thought that it would be less obvious to strangers if we were slightly separated. It's not a major problem, at least not for Brian and I. As soon as we got to the hotel, we scoped out the liquor megabar and he promised me that we'd have a couple drinks after the show in celebration of my first television appearance. I was happy and all, but I didn't want Brian to get the wrong impression from me.
"This is all extremely funny, and I'm having a good time, but I'm not always like this. I don't go out and get drunk every night, or even every weekend for that matter. I... I... I..."
"Skylar, I know that. I live with you, remember? Up until today, I never would've thought you'd gotten toasted before. I don't do it that often either, personal choice. But every now and again, I do. If you don't want to drink tonight, we don't have to." I loved the way he said "we" all the time.
"Thanks, Brian. How about we just wait and see what tonight brings. If we feel the need to get smoked, we will. If not, we'll just have to find something else to do. Okay?"
"Okay, you're the boss." he said shortly.
"Don't make me feel guilty. I promise that we'll find something to do." I said.
"Promise?" he asked in a child-like voice.
"Promise." I stated.
"Alright, but only because you promised." he said with a smile.
Dakota:
I never knew being a model could be this fun! Today for the shoot I got to wear a variety of clothes, mostly summer of course. The other girls who modeled with me were professionals and I learned so much from them. I think I definitely made the right choice when I decided to be a model. Everyone said I had huge potential and to remember them when I became a supermodel. A supermodel. Can you believe it? This is amazing. When Jacob gave me the pictures when he finished and developed them. It was unbelievable. I actually looked like a model. Wow! My favorite picture was when I was in a yellow bikini, splashing water in the air. It was a really fun picture. Man, I can't wait til everyone else sees them. They probably won't believe its me. Hell, I don't really believe its me.
Skylar:
Getting ready for Conan was a challenge. I decided yesterday that I would wear. I bought a form-fitting body-flattering blue slip dress. I was a step ahead because I at least knew what I was wearing, but that just wasn't enough. Beforehand, everyone was struggling to get ready. A.J., Nick, Kevin and Howie all came stormed in and out of our room, apparently swapping clothes and stuff with Brian. But with everyone coming in and out, I panicked that I wouldn't be ready on time. At one point when all the guys were in our room, I stopped them and yelled, "Listen up! You all need to leave this room for the next half hour so that I can calmly take a shower and get ready! Got it?!" Everyone was slightly shocked by my outburst, but one by one, they all left. Brian even started walking out the door, but I stopped him. "Brian, you don't have to go. It was just too much though with all of them in here. This is your room, too."
"Oh, that's okay, Sky. I thought that you might feel uncomfortable with me being here when you're taking a shower, so I figured that I'd just go and..." he stumbled.
"Don't be stupid, Brian. I don't care that you're here when I'm taking a shower. Hell, you've seen practically all of me anyways." I said.
Brian looked down at his feet, "Yeah, but still..."
"No buts, I'll even take all my clothes into the bathroom with me and completely change in there if it would make you feel more at ease."
He finally looked up at me. "No, you're right. I mean, it's not like I'll see anything anyways. I'll just go into the bathroom and you can change out here when you're done showering."
"Are you sure that you're okay with this?" I asked.
"Yes, Skylar, I am okay with this. I just..."
"Thanks, Brian." I said solemnly. "I'm gonna go hop into the shower."
"I'll just stay out here and get ready." he replied.